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20120208

Falling-down drunk, uniformed, on-duty prison officer filmed at Odendaalsrust: but he still keeps his job…

2012-02-07 A black prison official in Odendaalsrust was filmed on the job falling-down drunk – yet he still keeps his job. Other shocking conditions have also been revealed: with a prison official photographed fast asleep amongst prisoners – with his keys on his belt, noted Volksblad journalist Tom de Wet.

As can be seen above, this on-duty goverment official, who is supposed to guard prisoners, was so drunk that he had to shuffle around on his butt out of the building's front door - eventually he fell down and could only get into an upright seated position. Yet despite the entire scene being filmed by a cellphone, no corrective action was taken by the authorities against this black official.

Volksblad also established that another black official was caught carrying marijuana and knives at the prison - but he also remains in his post. Pictures were also taken of another black prison official asleep while sitting amongst prisoners, with his keys hanging on his belt. Another black official's keys - which he'd apparently forgotten - were actually handed back to him by a prisoner.. and all these facts were recorded photographically.

Yet when Cobus Mouton, an Afrikaner prison-guard at the same prison, insisted that the department of corrective services' standing orders be carried out to 'ensure everyone's safety,' he was fired after an 'internal hearing'. Volksblad interviewed Mouton about the shocking labour-conditions at the prison. He told Tom de Wet of Volksblad newspaper that in November 2010, he was ordered by the head of the prison Masoleng Molumaela to guard one prisoner by himself - however Mouton pointed out to Molumaela that the regulations required that two prison guards had to guard prisoners at all times - never one by himself.

Molumaela immediately lodged a formal complaint and Mouton was suspended: with the head of the prison claiming that Mouton 'had refused his orders because he was black'.

Mr Mouton became so traumatised by the unfairness of this suspension and the brutal hearing he had to undergo, that he suffered a nervous breakdown for which he required treatment. He also realised when he was due to return to work after this first suspension, that he would not be able to go back to work carrying a firearm while he suffered from his psychological condition and was still being treated for it. However Molumaela then rejected his sick-note from his specialist and accused Mouton of being absent from work without any reasons. Mouton then was fired. He registered an appeal and was moved -- ding this decision – to the commissioner’s office at Odendaalrus .

"Colleagues of all races now come and weep in my office about the unfair treatment I've been given. And they all say they live in fear for their own future at the department,' he told Volksblad.

The newspaper also wrote that they had heard 'from authoritative senior management levels' that the corrective services' permanent legal council identified as Advocate Mtsweni, had stated in writing that Mouton's suspension was 'irregular' and directly against the Department's own policies.' Mouton said he 'prays for an end to this ongoing, endless and emaciated procedure. "When this is over, I am looking for a good lawyer to sue the Corrective Services Department for this discrimination against me, probably because of my skin-colour but most definitely because I wanted to do my job correctly'.

The term "genocide" was coined by legal scholar Raphael Lemkin in 1943, writing:

'Generally speaking, genocide does not necessarily mean the immediate destruction of a nation, except when accomplished by mass killings of all members of a nation. It is intended rather to signify a coordinated plan of different actionsaiming at the destruction of essential foundations of the life of national groups, with the aim of annihilating the groups themselves.

The objectives of such a plan would be the disintegration of the political and social institutions, of culture, language, national feelings, religion, and the economic existence of national groups, and the destruction of personal security, liberty, health, dignity and lives of the members of such groups... '